DESCRIPTIVE TEXT NARRATIVE FOR SMOKE/DUST OBSERVED IN SATELLITE IMAGERY
THROUGH 0145Z OCTOBER 1, 2008
A BIG SMOKE DAY...Please find your area or state...it is most likely represented somewhere! Gulf of Mexico: A post-frontal/boundary strip of thin smoke can be seen stretching across coastal GA across N FL into the central Gulf to far NE Mexican coast which on average is about 200 to 250km wide. A second pocket of thin smoke is connected on the western portion into SE TX and portions of SW LA. Though not fully confident, smoke has tracked due south on the eastern side of the ridge and may have originated from fires in ID/OR region around half a week ago, but also could be from numerous agricultural fires in the Mississippi River Valley area of AR and MO or ag burns across southern Manitoba. Southern Alabama: A few fires across SW AL have produced plumes of thin smoke about 10km wide that have spread SE about 50-75km across S AL into the panhandle of FL. Mississippi River Valley (AR/MO/TN): Numerous agricultural fires across the Mississippi River Basin of E AR, the Bootheel of MO and E TN/MS have been producing thin smoke plumes and puffs, with isolated fires producing moderate amounts. The smoke has been generally moving SE with some of the SW AR fires near the Red River moving due south. This has nearly covered the area with smoke across SW TN, MS, E AR and N LA. Kansas: Two fires in Gray county (one north central, other S along the Meade county line) producing thin low level smoke that slowly was moving NNE but stronger midlevel flow was shearing the plume toward the SE coving much of Gray county and E Finney and central Ford counties. A few fires in NW Pratt county have similar conditions described above, but were limited to covering the entire county. A fire in far S Jewell county and one in far S Clay county have produced thin smoke that drifted SE with average widths of 10km and extensions to the SE of 50-75km. Texas Panhandle: A fire in SW Dallam county is producing thin smoke that has fanned out S to E as it moved SE. It covered Moore and Potter counties as well as portions of W Hutchinson county. The thickest area is moving ESE across central Moore county. A fire in far SE Castro county near Hale and Lamb county boarder produced a puff of moderate smoke that has diffused into a larger thin area that extends due E covering 1/3rd of Swisher and northern half of Hale county. New Mexico: A fire in S Rio Arriba county near Gallina is producing moderate smoke that extends NW into the mountains. The plume is about 25km wide and extends about 35km. Colorado: A new fire in far N Huerfano county in the San Isabel Nat'l forest is producing an interesting plume that extends north into the Mtns along the county line with Custer and Pueblo counties before turning due SE covering a 30km wide line to near Branson, CO in SC Las Animas county. A second fire in C Saguache county on the eastern flanks of the Rockies is producing a fan of thin smoke that is moving ENE before expanding south across the central valley of the county. Wyoming and the Black Hills of SD: A fire in the eastern portion of the Black Hills SW of Rapid City in Pennington county is producing thin to moderate smoke that is moving SW to NW and also SE. Low level flow is pulling the smoke SW and W into the Black Hills in plume that is about 10km wide and extends NW from the source about 35km. The midlevel smoke has been picked up by stronger NW flow and extends the smoke into NW Shannon county, SD. A fire near Sundance, WY in Crook county is producing a plume of thin smoke that is moving SE from the source to the NW portions of the Black Hills in a plume that is about 5-10km wide. A fire near Deadman's Butte in NW Natrona county is producing moderately dense smoke that is extending SE across a large portion of the county in a 15km wide plume. This smoke has melded with thin to moderate smoke from a new fire on the southern flanks of the Big Horns in extreme NW Natrona county. This fire's smoke started moving SE but has been shifting toward the SW and W and forms a curved 'C' as it merges with the aforementioned smoke near Deadman's Butte. A fire east of Jackson, WY in Teton county in the NW Gros Ventre Range is producing moderate smoke that extends ESE then SE along the spine of the Wind River Range in N Sublette county. The plume is about 20km wide. Montana: Thin smoke can be seen with small prairie fires in Central Big Horn, S Rosebud and far NC Garfield county. Smoke does not extend far from each fire. A fire in the Little Belt Mtns in far SW Cascade county (just north of the county line) is producing thin smoke that extends ENE into the plains to the Judith Basin/Fergus county line. Though slight shifting of the winds near the source due show a SE movement now into along the spine of the range. A fire on the MT/ID state line near Lakeview, MT is producing moderate to dense smoke that is fanning from NNE to SSE and covers the E ½ of Clark county, ID and the SE sliver of Beaverhead county. Idaho: It appears the South Barker fire in NE Elmore county has once again increased in intensity and is producing moderate smoke that is extending NNW in a 30km wide plume that covers portions of E Boise and SE Valley county. Oregon/N California: Thin smoke from the Wizard fire in W Jefferson county, OR is moving due north in a plume that is 40km wide and covers much of the eastern portion of the county and affecting SW Wasco county as well. A very large area of moderate to dense smoke can be seen covering a large portion of the Willemette Valley and the Coastal Ranges from Lane county to the Columbia river with a small portion into WA covering Clark county due to emissions from the Rattle, Lonesome and Kitson fire complexes in NE Douglas, W Klamath and SE Lane counties, respectively. A very large area of moderate to dense smoke can be seen covering a large portion of E and SE Oregon and offshore waters as far north as C Tillamook county, also including the counties of Del Norte and W Siskiyou in CA near and NW of the source fires: Blue2 and Siskiyou Complexes. The plume (which has similar demensions to the OR fires' plume) is about 60-80km wide and extends nearly 400km N to S. Central California: The Chalk fire in the coastal ranges of Monterey county has been producing dense smoke that is moving north. The plume is about 50-75km wide and covers a large swath from the spine of the coastal mountains east covering about ½ of the central valley from San Benito and Merced counties north to Sutter and Yold counties. Arizona: A fire on the eastern flanks of the Weaver Mtns in S Yavapavi county is fanning out to the NW and SW covering a large portion of the mountain range and portions of far N Maricopa county. The Yeager fire in SE Coconino county is producing moderate smoke that extends WNW nearly 100km into NC Yavapavi county. The plume is about 30-40km wide and melds with smoke from... A new fire near Globe and San Carlos, AZ in west Gila county. This fire is producing thin to moderate smoke that is fanning out across to the W and NW across into SW Yavapavi county. Canadian Prairie: Numerous agricultural fires along the Manitoba/Saskatchewan providential line has produced plumes of thin smoke that have consolidated into an area of thin to moderate smoke that is moving SSE along the line to around 50N. A second area of fires in S Manitoba in the Red River valley just SE of Lake Manitoba was producing a pocket of thin smoke that was moving due south into MN/ND...but has become obscured by high level clouds. British Columbia and Alberta: A fire on the high mtns of the Nelson Range (E of Kootenay Lake) near Lardeau, BC is producing a 5km wide plume of thin smoke that extends NE to near the AL/BC line. A fire near Abraham Lake in the Rocky Mtns Nat'l Forest of E Alberta is producing a smoke plume that extends NE along the valley about 40km. A fire near Prince George at the NW portion of the Cariboo Mtns. is producing thin to moderate smoke that is shaped like an 'L' moving due W across the valley about 50km and then turns N along about another 40km. Gallina